Autumn Leaves and Herbal Tea
by Cotton Candy Mareep
Summary: "She didn't have a charming, outgoing personality like Kathy, nor was she undeniably sexy like Selena. She wasn't as sweet as Renee, or as intelligent as Phoebe... No, she was simply Candace- plain, shy, boring. Painfully average. As overlooked as the crunchy, browning leaves on the street outside." Contest winner at BiddyAuthor's forum Story Harvest; theme is "Leafs."


**A/N: This is an entry for the contest "Leafs" in BiddyAuthor's forum, Story Harvest! A fluffy oneshot based on the Harvest Moon: Animal Parade game, obviously, and about one of my favorite non-canon couples- CandacexGill! Along with a slight hint of LunaxKasey. I've never written about any of the characters in Animal Parade before, as I don't own the game, so I hope I got their personalities right. Don't be afraid to tell me if you think someone seems too OOC, haha!**

**By the way, I prefer the spelling of 'leafs' as 'leaves' instead, but both are acceptable spellings.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon.**

* * *

Autumn Leaves and Herbal Tea

Candace leaned back in her rocking chair, brushing a few thin strands of blue hair out of her face. The gentle rocking motion was so...peaceful, and set her mind at ease. She sighed contentedly as her knitting needles clacked together, swiftly creating a woolen work of art.

Leaves brushed past the window behind her, carried on by the wind, flashes of warm color visible out of the corner of her eye as she paused in her knitting.

It was the day of the Moon Viewing Festival, but Candace was planning to spend it alone this year, as usual. Nobody had ever asked her to the Festival before, or on a date of any sort, for that matter.

She didn't have a charming, outgoing personality like Kathy, nor was she undeniably sexy like Selena. She wasn't as sweet as Renee, or as intelligent as Phoebe. She wasn't elegantly beautiful like Anissa, or as clumsily endearing as Maya. Even her own sister, Luna, as arrogant and childish as she was, had a certain flair to her that attracted men like bees to honey.

No, she was simply _Candace_- plain, quiet, shy. Painfully average. As overlooked as the crunchy, browning leaves on the street outside.

Candace was lonely, but she was used to it. It was only expected by now.

She refocused her attention onto her knitting. A pattern of red, orange, brown, and yellow hues, melded together so perfectly, formed a forest floor of autumn leaves in the young woman's lap. The colors matched perfectly the changing leaves outside, bringing a piece of the autumn season indoors. A smile graced Candace's lips as she stared down at the masterpiece before her. This was perhaps the best she had ever done, and the girl couldn't help but admire her own handiwork.

"_Candace_!"

The blue haired young woman frowned upon hearing her sister's voice, her moment of peace interrupted. She gently set her knitting on the table beside her and turned toward the sound. "What is it, Luna?"

Luna bounded into the living room in a flashy whirl of color, her large pink pigtails bouncing. The younger girl's face was alight with unsuppressed glee. "Candace, you'll never guess what just happened to me!"

Candace merely leaned further back in her chair- she wasn't a fan of her sister's guessing games. "Luna, what...?"

Luna paused dramatically, in an attempt to build up excitement for her big reveal. "..._Kasey_ asked me to the Moon Viewing Festival! Just now! Can you believe it? I passed him out on the street, and he walked right up to me and _asked_ me!" She folded her arms across her chest proudly.

"Oh..." Her sister bent over to scoop up her knitting again. "Good for you, Luna."

The girl standing before her frowned slightly, with a hint of disappointment in her sister's lack of reaction.

"Don't _you_ have a date for the Festival?"

Candace shook her head, sending her long blue braids swaying behind her. "No... I don't have time for such things..."

"But you must! My big sister can't be the only one at the Festival without a date! Not _again_! Why, isn't there _someone_...?"

Candace shook her head again, more firmly this time. "No."

The pink haired girl ignored her sister's faint protests. "Oh please. You must love someone!" She made a face as a sudden realization dawned on her.

"It-it isn't _Julius_, is it?" She looked positively horrified at the thought.

Candace suppressed the faintest of smiles. "_No_, I don't love Julius." Yes, Julius was a very nice man, but much too... _extravagant_ for her tastes.

Luna's expression softened. "Good... Well then, who is it? Who's that special someone?"

"I-I told you, Luna. There's no one."

The younger girl snorted disbelievingly, her eyebrows furrowed. "Candace, I _know_ there must be some boy you like, and you did say you would tell me if you ever developed a crush on someone!" She began to pout in a manner that would be considered greatly immature for her age.

"I would do the same for you! We _promised_!"

However, Candace simply frowned at her sister. Her voice was quiet when she responded, with a vague sense of regret. "He... He probably doesn't like me, anyway..." She trailed off.

"But-"

"But nothing. Now, I-I would really like to go back to my knitting... if you don't mind, Luna."

Luna rolled her eyes as she backed out of the room. "_Fine_, Candace. If you don't want my love advice, it's your loss."

Candace smiled as she was left alone, her irritation with Luna quickly fading. As much as Luna tried, and she really did try her best, the younger girl really was completely clueless when it came to her older sibling's love interests.

* * *

Later that day, Luna approached her sister a second time, a specific request in mind.

"Here, Grandma wants this delivered to Mayor Hamilton as soon as possible! It's that suit she mended for him. Could you return it for me? _I _need to prepare for my date." She smirked at the very thought of her upcoming night with Kasey.

Candace bit her lip, making a quick decision. "All right, Luna. I-I'll take it."

"Okay! Thanks, Candace- I owe you one!" She dropped a wrapped package into her older sister's lap and skipped away, presumably to prepare an acceptable outfit for her date.

Candace sighed softly at the girl's retreating form. To return the suit, she would have to go to Mayor Hamilton's house... and _he_ would probably be there. She winced at the memory that came to mind at the thought of that certain young man.

Oh, well. She would have to take her chances. Perhaps he wouldn't even be there- it was a festival day, after all. He wouldn't waste time at home alone during a festival, would he? He probably had another _date _to prepare for. Candace narrowed her eyes involuntarily at the very idea of him going on a date with some other girl.

Outside, fallen leaves swirled though the air in pockets of wind, and crunched satisfyingly beneath the girl's feet as she walked on toward her destination. The chilly autumn breeze tugged at the hem of her ankle-length skirt, and pulled at her long blue braids, causing loose hair to twirl and tangle around her face in a messy halo. She shivered and pulled her sweater tighter around her thin frame. But, despite the cold and wind, Candace really did like autumn- it was quiet and peaceful, not filled with the sounds of various insects or the loud shouts of children at play.

As she trudged on through the piles of leaves, however, her sense of foreboding increased. What if he really was there? And she embarrassed herself in front of him again?

It had been a cool, breezy autumn day, much like this one, when she had met him. The first and last time they ever came face to face, the day of the Harvest Festival.

Candace had been walking to the festival grounds early that morning, not paying attention to where she was going, distracted by the array of colorful leaves in the trees over her head.

"Ompf-"

In her distraction, Candace had collided with a proper-looking young man in plaid pants and a neat sweater vest, his blond hair slightly ruffled by the wind. The cup of hot tea clutched in his right hand sloshed and spilled over the rim of the mug. Candace felt the scalding hot liquid splash onto her chest, all over her newly knitted blue sweater, and her face began to burn with a similar heat.

"Oh-" The young man let out a gasp, and his eyes widened at the tea that had spilled on both himself and the girl in front of him. "Hey-"

Candace, meanwhile, felt remarkably embarrassed. There she was, blushing and awkward in front of the mayor's own son, both their clothing now stained with burning tea. And it was all _her_ fault.

She blinked away tears as she rushed back home before he could say a word, her face hot with humiliation.

Candace had often seen the young man around the streets of Harmonica Town both before and after the incident, but from that point on, she always averted her eyes. Sometimes he would give her a look, as if he wanted to speak to her, but she would always hurry away before he got the chance. She wouldn't face him again, and risk the embarrassment. That cold look of disapproval at her awkwardness. Avoiding him was preferable, even if it did mean ignoring her own feelings.

But it couldn't be that bad this time, could it? Candace braced herself as she approached the front door of the Hamilton home, raising her hand to tentatively knock on its polished wood surface.

The door creaked open, and there he was. Gill stood in the doorway, staring directly at her with a vaguely annoyed expression, his very presence causing the girl to freeze in her tracks. A notebook and pen were tucked under his arm as if his writing had been interrupted by Candace's knocking. She twirled one of her braids nervously, her stomach jittery as if it were filled with a torrent of leaves in a windstorm.

"Ahem... Hello?"

Gill greeted her with narrowed eyes, and Candace had to repeat herself multiple times before her voice was loud enough for him to hear her.

"I-Is your father home? Mayor Hamilton?"

He raised an eyebrow, staring down at Candace in that cold, calculating way that made her feel weak at the knees. "No... Why? What do you need?"

"I-I brought his suit over... from Sonata Tailoring. It's fixed."

Much to the girl's surprise, Gill formally beckoned her forward into the house. "Ah, yes... bring it in here."

The mayor's son led Candace into another room off the entry hall. Taking a deep breath, she clutched the wrapped-up suit closer to her chest and followed him into a tidy, nicely decorated kitchen.

Gill bent toward her and took the package from her grasp, gesturing toward one of the chairs at the dining table. "Please, sit down."

He went to put the suit away, and Candace sat quietly at the table until he returned. Her normally neat blue hair, now messy and tangled from the wind outside, cascaded around her face and shoulders as she anxiously picked a stray string from the edge of her sweater sleeve.

"Candace- would you like some tea, by any chance?"

Candace glanced up at him before quickly averting her eyes, staring at the table in slight embarrassment. A shade of pink tinged her cheeks as she nodded. "Yes... that would- that would be nice."

Gill busied himself around the kitchen to make the tea, picking out herbs from the cupboard and simmering them in boiling water. Candace watched him work out of the corner of her eye, too nervous to actually turn around and look at him directly. Herbal tea... it was one of her favorite beverages, and she lifted her head slightly at its comforting scent as Gill set the two mugs down on the table in front of her.

Cautiously, Candace grasped one of the mugs between her hands, feeling its heat warm her instantly. Her hands shook slightly, and she didn't understand why Gill was making her quite so nervous.

Neither of them spoke for a good few minutes as they silently sipped their tea. Finally, Gill spoke up, and Candace perked her ears to listen.

"You know, my mother always loved herb tea..."

Candace lifted her head an inch in surprise. Everyone in Harmonica Town knew that Gill's mother had died when he was very young, and that they rarely spoke of her, if at all.

"I'm sure you know, she died when I was just a boy... but I do have... faint memories of her."

He paused and glanced through the window, at the trees with their leaves of varying colors, not really seeing them. "I remember, the slightest memory of her preparing herb tea for us. As a family. I was only about two or three at the time, so the tea tasted bitter to me, but it was more the memory of being with her... the memory of her eyes, her smile..."

To her surprise and slight horror, there were tears forming in Gill's normally cold, expressionless eyes, and he quickly brushed them away. "So warm... it wasn't long after, that she became terribly sick, and... passed on."

Candace stuttered. "Why... Why are you t-telling me this?"

Gill shook his head, as if trying to shake off the memories that haunted him. "I... I barely knew her, and yet..."

With a sudden dash of bravery, Candace leaned across the table and took Gill's hand between her own. His eyes widened, and she felt her face go pink. "I-I'm sorry, Gill. I understand how it feels to lose someone. But think of it this way- she's not... gone. Not forever, at least. Y-Your mother is always watching over you... and I'm sure she'd be proud of what she saw."

She hesitated. "I mean... you're the future mayor of Castanet... you're a very hard worker, and you care about the island..." She blushed again, her voice barely above a whisper. "Y-You're smart, and handsome..."

Gill stared at her, but Candace refused to meet his eyes. They sat in silence for a moment, until Candace opened her mouth to whisper quietly, "I-I think I'm going to go home now. I need to get back to work soon."

He stood up from his chair just as she did, their bodies barely a foot away from each other.

Her heat beat so fast and loud, she was surprised that Gill couldn't hear it. Or maybe he did, and he just wasn't letting on. Was it just her, or was the space between them growing smaller...?

"Do you really feel that way?"

He was a few inches taller than her, but the height made little difference. They were so close, she could practically count his eyelashes. Rather long and feminine, for a male. And his eyes... as blue as the azure summer sky. They made eye contact, and for once, Candace didn't feel the need to look away.

She nodded.

And suddenly, there was no spaced between them. Gill's lips were on hers in an instant, so quick and unexpected that Candace had no choice but to break it quickly off and back away, her eyes wide.

"Candace-"

What had just happened? Her mind had become a whirlwind. She had to get out. Now blushing furiously, Candace backed away another few steps before turning toward the door.

"G-goodbye, Gill," she whispered.

"Wait, Candace-"

She was gone.

Of course she would run away- that was all she ever did. Candace felt tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She was a coward, that's what she was. A coward. She scurried down the road back toward home, crunching through the piles of leaves and swatting at the ones that blew at her face, tangling themselves in her hair.

"Candace!"

She thought she heard her name being called, a voice drifting on the wind, but chose to ignore it. It was probably her imagination, anyway.

"Candace, please-!"

She wasn't imagining it. Turning around, she spotted Gill rushing down the road behind her, his lips forming her name. The girl wiped her tears away with her sweater sleeve, but it didn't do much good. She had obviously been crying. Just another thing to add to her list of embarrassments.

Gill soon caught up to Candace, slightly out of breath from running after her.

"Candace, I-I apologize for my actions." Gill glanced down at her face, and then slapped a hand to his forehead in frustration. "I don't know what got into me, I-"

He shook his head, taking on a more professional tone, one that would be expected of the future mayor of Castanet. "Ahem... I mean, I am deeply sorry for... _violating_ you in such a way."

"It's fine..." Candace found herself saying.

Gill looked vaguely surprised. "Oh...?"

Candace nodded shyly as she moved closer to Gill, and he took a step toward her at the same time.

For a split second, Candace worried that some other villager might see them- how embarrassing _that_ would be- but then she realized it didn't matter. Nothing mattered but for the chilling autumn breeze, and the warmth of Gill's body against her own.

His lips were warm and surprisingly rough against her own soft, fragile ones. They pressed against hers, lightly at first, but harder as the kiss intensified. Her hands curled at his chest, just above his heart. One of his hands reached into her hair, fingers twisting around her long blue-tinted locks, tugging gently. The other rested at her waist, and she shivered at his touch, despite the layers of clothing between them. The cold autumn breeze tugged at the couple, rustling the leaves and sweeping them away, but for once, Candace felt warm.

They broke away, their cheeks flushed.

"Gill?" Candace could not believe she was doing this. Though by now, she really had nothing to lose.

He cleared his throat, straightening out his sweater and patting down his windswept blond hair in an attempt to maintain his professional attitude. "Ahem... yes?"

"Would you... would you like to go to the Moon Viewing Festival... w-with me?" She did it. She couldn't believe she actually asked Gill, the mayor's son, to-

The sound of Gill's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Yes... yes, Candace, I would... I would love to."

"Oh." She couldn't help it- she blushed, _again_, as pink as her sister's pigtails.

He smirked at her. "You look... _cute_ when you blush."

Candace simply blushed harder, and Gill pressed his lips to her forehead in a quick kiss. "…I'll see you tonight, then."

The blue haired girl smiled, a genuine smile. "Y-Yes."

And so it seemed that Luna wasn't the only one who could get a date to the Moon Viewing Festival. Perhaps Candace really did have something in common with the leaves of Castanet- maybe a bit boring at first, unremarkable, but beautiful in their own way, always changing.

Candace had a feeling this change would be for the better.

* * *

**A/N: Hmm, I seem to really enjoy writing about the sweet, shy characters. First, my drabble series involving Sabrina, and now this Candace oneshot... Ah well, they're all so cute. And though I do love both Luna and Julius, I always felt that Candace and Gill would make a cute couple. Both quiet, both socially awkward... haha. **

**Anyway, I hope that was acceptable for my first ToT/AP fanfiction, haha! I am pretty proud of it, myself. I know Gill was rather forward with Candace, but this was only a oneshot, so I couldn't really stretch the story out any longer. Either way, reviews are appreciated! Thanks for reading! :)**

**Edit: Thank you so much, HersheyChocolates101, for pointing out to me that the Town Hall and Gill and Hamilton's house are two totally different buildings! I don't own the game, and I really had no idea, so I just figured that it was all the same building, haha. Your review was quite helpful and lovely to read, and I appreciate it. I edited the story so it fits with the game better. Thanks again! :)**

**-Cotton Candy Mareep**


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